RVCC’s Mainstage series will present a performance by the female a cappella quintet Nobuntu on Friday, November 15, at 7 p.m., and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) {revised}, Saturday, November 23, at 8 p.m.
Nobuntu represents a new generation of young African women singers who celebrate and preserve their culture, beauty, and heritage through art. They believe that music can be an important vehicle for change that transcends racial, tribal, religious, gender, and economic boundaries. This powerful female a cappella quintet from Zimbabwe has drawn international acclaim for its inventive performances that range from traditional Zimbabwean songs, to afro jazz, to gospel. Nobuntu’s vocals, energy and breathtaking performances inspire and touch people of all cultures and walks of life. Tickets cost $30 and $40.
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) {revised}, presented by the Reduced Shakespeare Company, is an irreverent, fast-paced romp through all 37 plays in 97 minutes, The Complete Works was London’s longest-running comedy, having clocked a very palpable nine years in London’s West End. The show has been performed at the Kennedy Center, off-Broadway, and throughout the U.S. Join these madcap men in tights as they weave their wicked way through all of Shakespeare’s comedies, histories, and tragedies in one wild and memorable ride that leaves audiences breathless and helpless with laughter. Tickets to the performance, recommended for audience members ages 13 and older, cost $30 and $40.
RVCC’s School-Time series will include a performance of Africa Up Close, featuring the voices of Nobuntu, Friday, November 15, at 11 a.m., and The Diary of Anne Frank, Monday, November 18, at 10 a.m.
The 60-minute Africa Up Close show is geared for audiences in grades 3 and older. In this interactive concert, Nobuntu introduces students to the unique cultural qualities of Africa—the music, stories, traditions, and dances. Through performance and explanation, students gain a better understanding of how important music and dance are to the African culture, how these art forms are passed from generation to generation, and the deep meaning found in these songs and dances. Individual tickets cost $10 each, or $8 each for groups of 100 or more.
The National Players’ staging of The Diary of Anne Frank features a 90-minute production geared for students in grades 5 and older. A question-and-answer segment with the cast will follow the performance. In 1941 Amsterdam, 13-year-old Anne Frank and her family hide in a concealed storage attic to escape the Nazis. Over the next two years, with the fear of discovery ever present, Anne finds solace writing in her diary, capturing the lives of the secret annex’s eight inhabitants—from the horrors of war to the excitement of first love—with astonishing wit, determination, and idealism. As vital today as when it was first written, Anne’s story is brought to the stage by the National Players in the hope of inspiring the next generation to stand up for justice. Individual tickets cost $10 each, or $8 each for groups of 100 or more.
To purchase tickets or for more information about any Theatre at RVCC production, call the Box Office, 908-725-3420, or order online at www.rvccArts.org. Subscribers’ packages are available. Senior citizen, student and group discounts are also available for most performances.
RVCC is located at 118 Lamington Road in Branchburg, NJ. For further information, visit www.raritanval.edu.
Karam’s finely drawn characters are, above all, human beings, with all their hopes, dreams and disappointments. Superbly directed by Chase Newhart, six talented actors portray their personas with wit, heart and sympathy. No one is a villain, nor is anyone an angel. Jeff Maschi (right) is angst personified, running his hands nervously through his longish hair and jumping at every noise produced by the Chinese woman who lives upstairs. It doesn’t help that he was in a nearby coffee shop when the Twin Towers fell—that the observation deck hadn’t yet opened saved his life, if not his sanity.
Noreen Farley as Dierdre picks at her daughter’s living conditions, much as any mother would at seeing this dark “duplex” apartment Brigid has rented. And her strict Catholic upbringing and faith leaves no room for cohabitation before marriage, as she makes clear several times during the day. Sarah Pharoan is superb as Aimee, grieving the loss of her girlfriend and suffering from intestinal distress. And Marguerite Wurtz’s portrayal of Momo (left, with Farley)has flashes of humor, along with the frustration engendered by caring for a dementia patient. Despite sleeping through much of the action, she’s very convincing!
The emotional landmines hidden in that Chinatown apartment explode in Karam’s literate, witty (but not precious) script. Roy Pancirov has designed a two-story set (right) that mimics the one at the Roundabout Theatre, the play’s original venue. Drab walls, dankness, a treacherous spiral staircase echo the futility and sadness of the characters’ lives. Joe DeVico’s sound—lots of unexpected thuds and machine noises—further convey the emptiness of these people’s lives. Richard Hennessy and Fran Harrison are to be commended for atmospheric and appropriate lighting and costumes, respectively.
Carr is convincing as the young philosopher who wrote her doctoral dissertation on St. Augustine’s definition of love and who hopes to become a teacher, a post that ultimately will be denied her by her non-Aryan (Jewish) status. Tightly wound, visibly shaking, her anxiety is palpable, but she’s clever enough to project disingenuousness when confronted with Frick’s questions. As the interrogation progresses, we are not sure whether Arendt is lying or not. With his blond, tall good looks, Temple looks like an Aryan god, yet he is not so invested in his new job that he doesn’t respond to Arendt in a personal way, recounting the pick-up line he used on the woman who would become his wife, recalling a favorite teacher, even reciting a poem he liked as a child. In this way, the two young people share their vulnerabilities and discover similarities, quite the opposite to what is expected in such a situation. 
Rounding out the trio of characters is Karl Kenzler as Erich Landau, the lawyer sent by the German Zionists to secure her release. Unlikeable, pompous, he voices the sentiments of many assimilated German Jews He’s especially proud of the Iron Cross he was awarded for military service to Germany in World War I (similarly, Anne Frank’s father ran to get his military records to show the Nazi police who’d come to arrest his family), thinking it will inoculate him against German anti-Semitism. Dramatic irony leads us to realize he is doomed, despite his pride in his German citizenship, veteran status and prominent law career.
